Tag: historical fiction

One of the hardest things in writing historical fiction is to describe the world fully enough for the modern reader to imagine it while at the same time not having the character exclaim over, or even notice, items that are common to them. In our everyday lives, for example, we pass by buildings in our… Continue reading Background in Historical Fiction

One of the writing genres we teach in sixth grade is personal narrative. A narrative is a story, or fiction, but a personal narrative is based on a real event. The struggle is getting students to write good stories about an event in their lives. Now personal essay, or memoir, is supposedly a different genre.… Continue reading Creative Nonfiction

Throughout my life, I have listened avidly to stories of my family. It was no different when I married my husband and heard stories of his family. I turned my own stories into a novel, UNDER THE ALMOND TREES and I'm currently working on ALOHA SPIRIT a story of my husband's grandmother. The picture at left is… Continue reading Inspired by Family

Welcome to the third week of AUTHOR-GO-ROUND! This week it's my turn. My grandmother’s grandmother, Ellen VanValkenburgh, fascinated me from a young age. She left a tremendous legacy of strength for the women of my family, and she inspired my novel, Under the Almond Trees. On the left is a photograph taken sometime around the… Continue reading Author-go-Round: Me!

As some of you know, I have begun taking online classes in pursuit of my MFA in Creative Writing. This endeavor has pushed me to write a LOT this summer. The summer is half gone, but I have written a chapter of Aloha Spirit, started a new flying horse book, written a short story and… Continue reading Writing Craze